Sterling K. Brown Gives COVID-19 Update on 'This Is Us' Season 5 to Dr. Oz

Sterling K. Brown is giving a COVID-19 update on the filming of This Is Us Season 5, saying that there are "serious plans" in place to keep the cast and crew safe. During a virtual interview with Dr. Oz that airs on Thursday, Oct. 1, Dr. Oz asks Brown what the plan is to keep the fictional Pearson family safe during filming, since "the pandemic's not over yet." Brown replied, "No, it's not over, and there are serious plans that are being put into place as we speak."

One thing that has been done on set, Brown says, is they have marked off "different zones" in which the show's various "actors can occupy." There are also designated areas for the crew members as well, he explained. Essentially, the plan is to keep the cast "as separate as they can through the course of the day so that when you see us on camera that's really the only time that we're coming into contact with one another." He added, "The rest of the time, we're in our own little bubbles trying to be as safe as possible."

This Is Us Season 5 is scheduled to debut on Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 9 p.m. ET with a special two-hour episode. Luckily, Season 4 had fully completed filming before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, with the season finale airing as scheduled in March. The series started production on Season 5 in September, with series creator Dan Fogelman previously telling THR that he's "very excited about — especially with where the world is right now — the uplift and I would call it almost a rebirth that comes next season." He went on to say that there are "a lot of new beginnings" that will happen in Season 5, and, as fans have come to expect, "something big" will take place in the premiere.

Notably, Fogelman later went on to tell EW that, while the show will not deviate from the big things already in motion, it will continue to address things happening in the real world. "We have a carefully crafted plan through six seasons of the television show that hundreds of people have now devoted for four-plus years of their lives executing," he explained. "And we're going to execute that plan, no matter what's happening in the world."

"What's happening in the world may shift the details of how things happen, but the big moves continue to happen — and actually potentially heighten and make better the television show then maybe some of our initial plans, because that's our job," Fogelman added. "Here are the new rules we've been given. How do we continue to try and top ourselves and make things even better than they were?"

Dr. Oz airs daily on weekdays. Check your local listings. Season 5 of This Is Us will premiere Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 9 p.m. ET.